The Third Avatar

"Go back to sleep?" Danitz paused, then said in astonishment, "But didn't we go out to gather intelligence? We haven't found anything yet."

"Who told you there was no gain...?" Black Scorpion's reaction already tells me that he knows nothing about that Ghost Ship is suspected to be a relic of the Solomon Empire, and has only regarded it as a legend from beginning to end... Lorry smiled and said, "Are we supposed to keep waiting if he doesn't come back?"

"Let's go back to the Inn first, and continue tomorrow."

"... Alright, anyway, the captain instructed that your opinion should be the final decision." Danitz didn't hesitate and finished the rest of his drink in a few gulps.

He made a move to stand up and suddenly asked:

"By the way, why were you looking at those guys at the next table just now? I had a feeling you understood what they were saying?"

The clumsy Hunter might be a bit cowardly, but his observation skills were pretty good... Lorry glanced at him with slight surprise, and immediately gave a reason:

"Their smiles were lewd, like when you mentioned Joy Valley before. You could guess what they were talking about even with your toes."

Danitz gave Awkwardness, dry laugh, then immediately shut his mouth, glancing around nervously as if nothing had happened.

Lorry smiled inwardly, but didn't tease the guy any further. He quickly finished cleaning up the remaining fruit plate, draped his coat over his arm, and stood up.

"Let's go." Meanwhile, at the end of the second-floor corridor, in a luxuriously decorated office.

Lorry "Troll" Tego, whose Spirit Body was almost completely controlled, bent down and took the Safe key from the "Black Scorpion's" desk drawer.

He looked around, rummaged through a junk box in the corner and pulled out a black Handbag, then walked into the adjoining Small Room with practiced ease.

Ignoring the several Safe used as disguises, he continued forward, pulled open a bookshelf to reveal a hidden door behind it, and ducked into the secret passage.

A moment later, Tego left the office carrying a bulging black Handbag, walked through a red-carpeted corridor, and arrived at the heavily guarded entrance.

The four heavily armed bodyguards all turned their attention to them:

"Grown ups!"

Tego gave a nasal "hmm" and said in a muffled voice:

"The boss and the guy who just went in have something important to discuss. You guys guard this place. Don't let anyone near without my or his orders."

"Clear."

One of the bodyguards assured him confidently, "Sir, rest assured, with us here, not even a fly can get in."

Tego glanced at him and recognized him as one of the earliest old men to follow "Black Scorpion." He nodded almost imperceptibly, picked up his black Handbag, and swaggered through the path cleared by the bodyguards toward the spiral staircase.

Soon, his imposing figure disappeared from the bodyguards' sight.

A young bodyguard couldn't help but say, "Boss, Lord Tego is taking so much money out with him, aren't we going to ask him anything?"

--The raised shape of stacked banknotes makes them easy to identify.

"Fine, then go after them and ask," said the elderly bodyguard, who had just made the guarantee on behalf of everyone, and was referred to as "the boss," in an annoyed tone.

Then, he gave a low hum and explained to the new subordinate in a low voice:

"What kind of relationship do Lord Tego and the boss have? It's something they forged together years ago when they went out to be Pirate, fighting tooth and nail for it."

"Don't even mention him carrying a Handbag full of money; even if he carried Safe out, it's none of our business to say a word, understand?"

The younger bodyguards exchanged glances and spoke one after another:

"I've got it."

A cool sea breeze swept across the land, the Red Moon and stars adorned the dark curtain, and the crisp chirping of insects came from the bushes along the roadside. But if anyone approached even slightly, these little creatures would alertly quiet down, patiently waiting for the enormous creature in their eyes to leave.

In the thin mist, the dim yellow light of Kerosene Lamp refracted into a beautiful halo, and young women could often be seen lingering near the alley entrance. They wore either long dresses in the style of Intis or local costumes, like little foxes on the hunt, carefully observing every passing prey.

Norga is especially enchanting at night.

After declining the invitations of two ladies to chat deeper into the alley, Lorry heard Danitz's deliberately lowered voice beside him:

You are very rational.

"Hiring prostitutes in Norga is a very dangerous thing."

"How so?" Lorry asked casually out of curiosity.

Danitz explained:

"Because you never know if there are other people in the alley behind them. Many local natives like to use this method to lure tourists in and rob them."

"At first it was easy to spot them, as long as they didn't hire local streetwalkers, but later they got smarter and started hiring Intis people."

"Even if you go to the governor's office, it won't help. They'll say you bullied their wife or sister, that the money you took was compensation, or even accuse you of harassing or raping a woman."

As he listened, Lorry gradually developed a sense of déjà vu.

The next second, he suddenly realized, wasn't this just a variation of a honey trap? The form was slightly different, but the principle was similar. Different civilizations give rise to the same routines... Lorry clicked his tongue twice in his mind, then, with a sudden thought, glanced at the Fourth Sailor-in-Charge and said:

"You know quite a lot."

"Did you learn this from other Pirate bragging?"

Danitz nodded, his face flushed.

"Yes." You think I believe it or not...? Lorry chuckled to himself, then said, "You go back to the Inn first, I'll take a walk by myself."

"Okay." Having narrowly escaped social death, Danitz now longed for solitude. Without much thought, he nodded and headed towards the Inn.

A cool night breeze swept over me.

After walking a short distance, he suddenly woke up with a start:

That guy doesn't speak the local language, so it's inconvenient for him to even ask for directions, let alone get information. Why would he leave me behind and act alone?

Unless it's something that doesn't require language, but communicates through body language!

This piece of Dogshit... he really can't shake his playboy habits... The images of those streetwalkers flashed through his mind, and Danitz sighed with melancholy.

To paraphrase Emperor Roselle, he felt his captain was being cuckolded.

A secluded alley.

A burly man strode in, his mountain-like figure blocking most of the Red Moon that slanted down, making the environment even darker.

At the far end, the shadows Distortion slightly, and Lorry emerged silently.

"Troll" Tego nodded slightly to his true form and handed over the black Handbag in his hand. "The check plus Cash totals 300,000 Verl D'Or."

300,000 Verl D'Or is equivalent to 12,500 pounds at the standard exchange rate... After subconsciously completing the mental calculation, Lorry nodded slightly, a smile involuntarily appearing on his lips.

He plans to return to Backlund tomorrow, not only to spend time with Fors and deal with Joe's affairs, but also to seek Leonard's help in purchasing the "Dream Stealer" Formula.

I was just wondering where to get the money when someone unexpectedly delivered it to my door.